The Ice of the Rink
by JRWStudios
Summary: She's a sports reporter known for getting into uncomfortable situations. He's a guy who likes playing hockey. At least, on the outside anyway. But when he slips up and allows this anger prone beauty to get the first interview he's ever allowed, something sparks in her. Will her new passion for her job lead to more trouble than she can handle, or is it all his plan?
1. Prologue

Prologue: Summons

The door burst open, leaving the crew of the newsroom shocked and scared as they stood to watch a lovely young lady with a horrid expression stalk by. Her blonde roots shone like a halo in the harsh lighting that made her dyed red hair and brown eyes go ablaze in a clear anger, making her expression look so much more evil. She ripped the band holding her ponytail out, stopping in front of a scared camera man as he shook visibly under her glare.

"How many times do I have to tell you: don't leave me alone at an arena!" she was pissed, snapping the elastic band as she twisted it. "Those jackass athletes don't know a thing about boundaries!"

"I'm sorry Ms. Mountney! I forgot I-"

"That's just the problem eh?! You _forgot_! You forgot and left me alone surrounded by idiotic athletes that don't know what 'no' means!" she hissed, but her angry posture straightened when the studio doors opened again.

"Grace, we need you at Air-"

"Air Canada Centre to cover the Leafs game." she rolled her eyes, turning to face the man standing in the door. "Doesn't NHL usually cover the big games?"

"Yes, but there's a rumor that Matthew Williams will be playing with the team tonight and I want an interview!"

"Williams eh?" she sighed, knowing full well that her boss would make her go to the game even if she was in a foul mood. "Yes sir I'm on it… Henry load up eh?!"

"Yes Ms. Mountney!"

"Let me get changed and I'll-"

"No time for that Grace. The game starts in an hour and it'll take twenty minutes to get there!"

"Yes sir…" Grace muttered, snatching a new ponytail holder from her desk as she passed. "Come on Henry!"

"Yes ma'am!" the man hurriedly followed her out to the news van so they could leave. With her behind the wheel on the uncrowded roads, the twenty minute drive was made in only fifteen, leaving them plenty of time to actually get inside. They set up quickly, so Grace took a moment to sit down.

"Tch, what's so great about this Williams guy anyway…"

"He's a really great guy, but no one can ever get an interview with him."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Henry nodded. "It's like, impossible to get the guy on camera unless he's on the ice or with his team. Any other time you catch him it's for a couple of seconds if you're lucky."

"I see." she frowned. "I'm assuming Drake knew this before hand."

"Mmhmm."

"So… _why_ are we here?"

"Well, he might be willing to talk to-"

"Oh no…"

"-a woman."

"Shit…"


	2. Chapter 1: Hitting the Ice

Chapter 1: Hitting the Ice

Matthew laughed with his team mates as he walked through the back of the arena, trying to kill some time before the game. His little group laughed and chatted loudly amongst themselves, but fell silent when Matt suddenly stopped. The man was looking down a hall that lead to the stands, but upon going quiet the others heard the steady 'click' of heels coming down the hall. Returning to his side they were surprised to see a lovely young woman walking their way, a cameraman following close behind.

"Isn't that-?"

"Yeah it is."

"Hey, uh, Matt, we'll leave you to it eh?"

He heard them hurry off, his gaze never leaving the burning brown of the approaching reporter. Her own gaze wavered slightly under the intensity of his almost purple hue, but she didn't stop until she was right there with him, and only then did he realize the camera had been rolling the whole time. She narrowed her eyes at him, but turned with an excited smile to the camera.

"I'm here with star hockey player Matthew Williams, scheduled to play tonight with our own Toronto Maple Leafs!" she turned to him, her gaze chilling instantly. "How are you feeling about tonight's game?"

"Uh, pretty good. Looks like an easy win."

"Oh great confidence! Is that in your team or in yourself?"

"Both really." he scratched his neck. "They've practiced hard."

"So we're in for a show eh." she seemed to state it as fact more than she questioned it.

He didn't realize he had began to smirk until he noticed her twitch away from him. "I guess, but wouldn't it be easier if you stayed to find out?"

The woman seemed to twinge in fear when he leaned close to her. "I don't do interviews Ms. Mountney, but if we win I might make an exception so you can keep your job." he saw her shudder, but still turn and smile at the camera.

"Well it looks like thats it for now! Stick around after the game for an exclusive interview with Matthew for our viewers only!"

"...And cut." Henry smiled as the light on his camera shut off. "Nice going Grace."

The woman flinched, looking up at Matthew. "Good luck."

"Thanks." he gave a soft smile, but felt a little guilty when he saw the anger in her eyes. "See you after the game."

She nodded, hurrying off and dragging a more than reluctant cameraman behind her. Matthew felt his guilt grow, knowing full well that if the woman returned to her station without the interview she'd surely be fired on the spot (it had happened many times before after all), but turned to go rejoin his teammates anyway.

* * *

Grace muttered and crossed her arms as she sat in her seat, pouting as she stared at the ice.

"Mon dieu…" she sighed. "What have I gotten myself into?"

"A promotion, more than likely."

"Oh… great…" she frowned, watching the lights dim.


	3. Chapter 2: Games

Chapter 2: Games

The players made their way out onto the ice, grinning as fans cheered for them. One player in particular seemed to get the most attention, though the duo sent to interview him became confused when they saw 'Canada' printed on the back of his jersey.

"Wait, isn't that-"

"Williams," Henry nodded. "He wears 'Canada' or 'Kanata' on his jersey depending on where he happens to be playing. There's actually a player like that in the States."

"Really?"

"Yeah, he wears 'America' or 'USA' on his." the man watched intently as the puck dropped, sending the teams into a well planned frenzy. "Supposedly he's Williams's brother."

"Oh wow." for once Grace actually paid attention to the game, noting how the players on the visiting American team seemed a little frightened of 'Canada'. The man didn't seem bothered though, playing the game so perfectly you'd think he'd been practicing for centuries. The way he controlled himself while moving on the ice, you could tell he was running the rink.

 _It was his game_.

"He's good."

"He's a _legend_." Henry grinned. "He's the lead runner in just about every major international game, including Olympics."

"No wonder Drake wanted an interview." the woman nodded, but she went rigid when another, more cocky player suddenly slammed Matt into the side. Her eyes went wide when the glass splintered, as did the player, though Matt didn't seem the least bit fazed. He broke away, leaving the other man staring after him in awe.

"The-how much-what?!" she was quite literally on the edge of her seat.

"Matthew Williams, strongest man in the rink. I've seen him nearly go _through_ the glass before."

"Wow." she was curious now. Never before had she been so interested in a sport or _athlete_ , even though her job was to cover such things. "That's it, I've made up my mind."

"Wha-"

"I'm going to give him the interview of his _life_. Hurry, go set everything up!"


	4. Chapter 3: Interviewing 'Canada'

Chapter 3: Interviewing 'Canada'

"Live in three… two…"

"Welcome, and thanks for joining us!" Grace smiled excitedly. "For those of you tuning in for my breakdown of tonight's game, have I got a surprise for you. With me now, for an exclusive interview is the star of the rink, Matthew "Canada" Williams. Now, Matthew, I was here to personally watch the game and really, what can I say except _wow_."

Matthew shifted uncomfortably, trying to ignore the camera. "Thank you Grace, but really I'm no star."

"Well our viewers think otherwise!" the screen set up behind them lit up, showing randomly gathered status updates and tweets, and even a few Tumblr messages. "Throughout the game the NHL and Toronto Maple Leafs' facebooks and twitters have been blowing up with praises for you!"

"Well I-I guess it's possible I have _some_ fans." he stuttered, rubbing his neck.

"If by some you mean _millions_ , then yes, you have some."

"I can't really say I think it'd be _that_ high…"

"Oh but it is Matthew." she smiled. "Now about tonight's game. I've never seen a man play the way I saw you play tonight!"

"I just did my best."

"Well your best was _amazing_! You must be a heavily sought after player."

He shrugged. "Eh… I guess."

* * *

Grace found herself grinning as Henry began packing up their stuff to take back to the van. Even as Matthew squirmed uncomfortably, she reached out to give him a handshake.

"Thank you for your time Matthew. It was a pleasure."

"Pleasure's mine." he nodded, smiling slightly and turning to leave. "Maybe we'll meet again eh?"

"Maybe." she watched him go before she began to giggle in glee. Henry arched his brow, clearly worried about her as she clasped her hands together.

"Grace?"

"I love this job!" she grinned (yeah, clearly something had struck a chord in her). "Quick, we have to find out when the next major game is! I want coverage!"

"Ms-"

"Back to the station, now!"


	5. Bonus: Full Interview, as Written

Full interview from Chapter 3, as it was written!

G: Grace

M: Matthew

G: Welcome, and thanks for joining us. For those of you tuning in for my breakdown of tonight's game, have I got a surprise for you. With me now, for an exclusive interview is the star of the rink, Matthew "Canada" Williams. Now, Matthew, I was here to personally watch the game and really, what can I say except _wow_.

M: *shifts uncomfortably* Thanks Grace, but really I'm no star.

G: Our viewers think otherwise! Throughout the game the NHL and Toronto Maple Leafs' facebooks and twitters have been blowing up with praises for you!

M: Well I-I guess it's possible I have _some_ fans.

G: If by some you mean millions, then yes, you have some.

M: I can't really say I think it'd be _that_ high…

G: Oh but it is Matthew. *smiles* Now about tonight's game. I've never seen a man play the way I saw you play tonight!

M: I just did my best.

G: Well your best was amazing! I can see why the team looks up to you so much. You're a great leader on the ice.

M: Well I've played my share of rinks in my life… *chuckles*

G: I can tell. Who taught you?

M: I taught myself actually.

G: Really? Well you must have been one hell of a kid eh? Covered in scrapes and bruises and ice burns I'd wager.

M: *laughs* You'd be right.

G: Now Matthew, I gotta ask. I saw you hit the glass tonight and boy was I surprised to see it splinter the way it did. What was running through your head at the time?

M: Don't go through! *smiles* Believe me, I was as shocked as you!

G: It must've been scary eh?

M: A little, but I think the other guy was more scared than I was.

G: I'd put money on it. *leans forward* So about that jersey of yours.

M: Yeah?

G: Why Canada? Is it to represent our home?

M: No, no. I did it to show that I'm not loyal to any one team. I go where ever I'm needed.

G: Including major international and Olympic competitions?

M: If I'm needed, then yeah, even those.

G: You must be a heavily sought after player.

M: I guess.

G: … Being such a well known player, why has noone interviewed you before?

M: I just… get a little camera shy I guess. It's different when I'm on the ice, hiding under a helmet.

G: I see. *nods* I understand, I was the same way before I got this job.

M: Hm...


	6. Chapter 4: Job Security and Tim's

Chapter 4: Job Security and Tim's

"Where is she?! Where is Grace Mountney?!" heads snapped up, eyes locking on the confused woman as she stood to confront her boss. The man hurried over to her, a grin on his face as he held out an envelope.

"Congratulations, ms head of sports."

"Uhm, excuse me?" she slowly took the envelope, opening it with caution. "This is-?"

"A bonus, for actually getting an interview!" Drake smiled. "And a promotion!"

"I-I don't think I deserve this!" she stuttered. "I mean, I'm very grateful of course but all I did was interview a guy!"

"No, all you did was get the interview of the century!" he reached out to grab her shoulders. "Other stations have been calling, asking -no, _begging_ to know how you did it! They've been running stories on it! It's front page news across the country!"

"Front page?" she was shocked.

"Yes!" he was excited.

"I-I can't believe this." Grace fell into her chair in disbelief. "Just from an interview?"

"Of the century~" her boss added in a sing-song voice. "So get ready, you make your debut in thirty!"

* * *

All eyes were on the set, staring at the woman who sat behind the desk. The man sitting beside her rolled his eyes, muttering under his breath before falling neutral when the camera started rolling.

"Good evening, joining me for the first time in the newsroom here's your new main Grace Mountney."

"Thanks Dylan," she gave the camera her trademark smile. "All across Canada, fans and non-fans alike have been tuning in to get a glimpse of my exclusive interview with famed hockey star Matthew Williams. Well here today, you're going to see it again."

* * *

' _What was running through your head at the time?'_

' _Don't go through! Believe me, I was just as shocked as you!'_

Matthew couldn't help but smile, turning off his TV. He had been shocked to see a shot from the interview in the morning paper, but now he was just happy to see Grace was doing well. Sure it had been a little embarrassing when he found out just how big a deal the interview was, but hey, he didn't cost another person their job.

Yet he couldn't help wanting to talk to her again, without the camera there.

"Grace Mountney eh?" he picked up the morning paper again. "Hm… it might be worth interviewing _you_ myself."

* * *

"See you tonight, when I go live at the final game of the season!" Grace kept a smile on her face until the cameras were off, only then turning to her co-anchor. "What the hell Dylan?"

"What?"

"You did nothing but talk the entire time the interview was rolling!"

"So what?" the man got up, turning away. "Not like I care."

"Then why are you here eh?" she muttered as he walked off. Henry approached soon after, handing her a cup of coffee as she stood up.

"You were great Ms. Mountney."

"Thanks Henry, but Dylan-"

"Is immature. He wears a mask for the cameras, don't worry about him."

"Yeah I-" she cut off as her cell phone began to ring. In moments it was at her ear.

"Hello?"

{ _Ms. Mountney?_ }

"Yes."

{ _It's Matthew. Care to meet up?_ }

"Matthew?" she went wide-eyed, completely missing the looks of everybody around her. "Uhm, sure but-"

{ _Tim's, across from your building_.}

Grace felt her arm drop as soon as the line went dead. "Oh… my… god…"

* * *

Matthew chuckled as he watched Grace slowly walk up to the counter of the Tim Horton's, eyeing him the entire time she ordered. It wasn't long before she was approaching him where he sat in the back of the place. She seemed nervous to say the least, but he was just glad the fear from their first encounter was gone.

"Grace."

"Matthew." she sat across from him. "How'd you get my personal number?"

"I have ways." he smiled. "But don't worry, I called with _my_ personal number so we're even."

"So why call me?"

"Well I saw your segment on the news earlier. Since you've already interviewed me, I thought I'd return the favor."

"Alright, fire away."


	7. Chapter 5: Holy Hell

Chapter 5: Holy Hell…

Matthew sighed as he walked through Toronto, looking for something to do. He finally decided to head to Kensington Market, just to walk around and maybe buy a few more trinkets for his already disorganized house. Upon making it to the street his nose was assaulted by all the smells wafting around, making him sneeze.

"Yeesh, I still can't walk in here without doing that." he chuckled, walking through the crowds. He had always enjoyed the markets, no matter when he went. So while he was there he decided to go ahead and eat, maybe get something for later.

Matthew had just started toward a stand selling fruit when his phone started to vibrate in his pocket. Pulling it out he found he had a text message from Grace that seemed pretty frantic (at least he assumed it was, being written in all caps).

[Grace Mountney

(xxx) xxx-xxxx

YOU HAVE A TWIN?!]

His face fell into a scowl when a picture sent after the text popped up, showing a very familiar man sticking his tongue out at the camera. But the part of the 'selfie' style picture that made him scowl: the man's arm slung around Grace's shoulder, surely the reason for the uncomfortable shock on her face.

So he hit the call button, not to call Grace though oh no.

{ _Sup dude! hero speaking!_ }

"Get your hands off of her Alfred or so help me-"

{ _Nahaha what'll you do Mattie?_ }

"Remember Sochi?"

{ _...you wouldn't dare._ }

"Try me."

{ _Hang on dude, I think your girl-_ }

"She's not my girlfriend!" his voice broke. Yeah, now people were looking at him weird.

{ _Then what's the issue?_ }

"She's off limits."

{ _Oh I see~! Mattie has a little crush!_ }

"Alfred-"

{ _Nahahaha! Bye now~!_ }

"Alfred!" but the line cut off, leaving a very ticked off Matthew to storm off. After all, you can't take a picture in Canada-

Without him knowing where you took it.

* * *

Alfred grinned as he dragged Grace out onto the ice of Roger Arena. The woman hissed and tried to jerk away, but his grip was firm.

"Calm down girlie, I'm just trying to help my brother out here!"

"Oh please! And don't call me girlie!" she fought against him to no avail. "Let me go!"

"Okay fine," he did just that, leaving her alone on the ice, which would have been fine under normal circumstances.

But she had on her heels, not ice skates.

Grace quickly slipped, hitting the ice with a thud so audible her kidnapper cringed.

"Whoops."

"Whoops my ass!" she turned onto her knees and began to crawl to the siding. It didn't work very well, and Alfred seemed content to just laugh at her. At least, until he heard the arena doors burst open, the hinges screeching from the force.

"Alfred Foster Jones!" Matthew quickly stormed over, amazing Grace when he walked straight out onto the ice without slipping, despite the sneakers he wore. "You got a problem eh?!"

"Wha~t? _Me_? I have no problems." Alfred grinned. "Your little girlfriend might though."

"She's not my girlfriend!" yeah, his voice broke again.

"Yeah sure! You certainly seem to like her!"

"She's _nice_!"

"You let her get an interview! How long have you been playing Matt? Huh? Since the _beginning_. You know the rules, that's why you don't stick with a team! That's why _none of us_ stick with a team! But no, you've gone and let her get you on camera! She means something to you Matt, don't say she doesn't!" Alfred's bright eyes and smile were long gone. "Dammit don't say you let her get to you! You know how that ends!"

"Shut up Alfred!" Matthew glared daggers at his brother. "You're saying to much uncensored!"

"Shit Matt…"

Grace scoffed. "Uhm, you two _are_ human right?"

The boys shared a look, then made their way over. "Well…"

"Not exactly…"

She let them help her out of the rink and to a bench. "You're… what then?"

"Countries."

"Canada and United States."

"America for short. We're really brothers though, that's not a lie."

"I'm the older one, don't let him say otherwise."

"Shut up Matt."

"Countries?" she looked uncertain, with her eyebrow arched as she looked at them. "Really?"

"And she thinks we're crazy bro."

"Go punch the glass."

"No way dude."

"Do it Al."

"Fi~ne!" Alfred walked over to the glass and thumped it, making Grace gap when it shattered. "Happy? I'm not paying for that by the way."

"Didn't expect you to." Matt shrugged, looking down at the reporter. "Grace, you know better than to repeat anything you've heard right?"

"Uh-huh."


	8. Chapter 6: Surprise Aid

Chapter 6: Surprise Aid

Grace muttered and held her head in her hands as she sat hunched over at her dining room table, staring in a stress induced agony at the bills laid out before her. Even with her bonus and pay raise, she was still scrambling to pay off her loans, not to mention manage her few bills. How she had managed to rack up such a debt she didn't know, but damn was it annoying. So when her phone rang, it was a welcome distraction from her stressful descent into her own personal hell.

"Hello?"

{ _Are you okay? You sound stressed._ }

"I am." she groaned. "I have so many bills that are due…"

{ _Do you need any help?_ }

"No, but a good cup of coffee would be nice…" Grace sighed, pushing around the papers. "I'm sorry Matthew, you probably have to deal with worse things than bills…"

{ _Only in times of war._ } there was a laugh. { _I was calling to see if you'd go out to dinner with me this weekend but I think I have a better idea._ }

"And what would that be?"

{ _How do you like your coffee?_ }

The woman smirked, suddenly remembering a line her mother used to use. "Like my men."

{ _Which is… how?_ } Matthew sounded worried, and it only made her smirk grow into a grin.

"Blonde and sweet."

{ _O-Okay well uh I might just see you later so uh.. yeah. Bye._ }

Grace didn't even have a chance to say anything before he hung up, and it only served to make her laugh at how flustered he must have been. It would've made her happy to see him squirm like that, but as soon as her eyes opened again her happiness faded to annoyance once more. She glared at her bills as she set her phone down, fingering through them to try and find the more important ones.

"This is gonna be a long week…"

* * *

Matthew smiled slightly as he walked up to Grace's townhouse, lightly kicking the door since he couldn't knock without spilling something. It took a few moments, but soon the door was opening and a half-asleep Grace stood in the entryway, blinking at him in shock. She had to shake her head before she stepped aside to let him in, and he happy to hand her the coffee he picked up for her as he walked in.

"I think I should've gotten you something stronger."

"Nah, this is fine." she yawned, walking over to her table. Matthew followed, and looked in surprise at all the bills piled up in front of her when she sat down. He frowned, sitting down a bag of doughnuts before pulling out a chair to sit beside her.

"How did you manage to rack all this up?"

"If I knew that then I probably wouldn't be in this mess." she sighed, shuffling through the papers again as she drank her coffee.

Matthew gave her a concerned look, but had to bite his tongue before he said something stupid. But he wasn't blind, he could see how stressed she was, and as if the bags under her eyes weren't enough her perfectly manicured nails were chipped and broken, like she had been dragging her nails across something hard.

"Grace… are you _absolutely sure_ that you don't need _any_ help? I mean, I think you could use at least a little, even if it means you can have one night to sleep well."

She muttered, burying her face in her hands. "Do I really look that bad?"

"You remind me of my brother last time he went three weeks without coffee."

"That must be bad."

"He tried to strangle one of the other countries, so yeah."

Grace sighed, running of her hands up to her forehead as she dropped the other as to look at him from the corner of her eye. "What do you have in mind?"

"Well, I could always pay-"

"No, not interested."

"Hear me out first!" he scowled, making her fall quiet. "I could always pay a few of these that you can't handle right now, like that bank loan that you've let be dragged out for the past several years." he picked up the bill she had been trying to keep covered. "And no, you won't owe me a thing for doing this for you, I'd simply be doing it out of the goodness of my heart. Besides, it goes against my raising to let such a nice woman suffer through stuff like this. I was raised much better than my brother after all."

"Oh how admirable."

"Oui." he smirked. "So?"

"I'm sure this will somehow come back to bite me in the ass later whether I agree or not so sure, go ahead, and thank you very much for such a kind offer. Your parents would be very proud."

"Nah."


End file.
